OpenSutra
One Scroll, A Thousand Years
One Scroll, A Thousand Years: OpenSutra Buddhist Texts Exhibition
A long-form exhibition drawn from published OpenSutra manuscripts: scripture pages, image fragments, seals, gold ink, annotations, and traces of handwork.
Volumes
5,142
Period
Across centuries
Forms
Manuscript · Print · Painting
Unfolding
01
Scripture, Image, First Light
From the Diamond Sutra and illustrated Jin-gang pages, the exhibition begins with the relation between text and image.
FeaturedOPENSUTRA_ORG_0000006
Diamond Sutra
This item is a long scroll of the Diamond Sutra printed in the ninth year of Tang Xiantong (868), and is one of the world’s earliest printed objects with a clear date; it is now held by the British Library.
FragmentOPENSUTRA_ORG_0000007
Illustrated Scenes of the Diamond Sutra
This item consists of pictorial illustrations and sutra text related to the Diamond Sutra, attributed to the translation by Kumārajīva, and belongs to visual transmission materials of the Prajñā scriptures.
TraceOPENSUTRA_ORG_0000044
Diamond Sūtra (Vajracchedikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra)
The Diamond Sūtra, Ming Wanli-period hand-painted copy, combines the Prajñā scripture text with painted decorations, reflecting the continued attention to the Diamond Sūtra within Ming dynasty Buddhist traditions of writing, woodblock production, or painting.
Bodhi leaf
02
Painted Leaves, Silent Figures
Small painted worlds gather on leaf and album pages: Buddhas, arhats, gold letters, and devotional images.
FeaturedOPENSUTRA_ORG_0000016
Collection of Painted Buddha Images on Bodhi Leaves
The Collection of Painted Buddha Images on Bodhi Leaves is an 18th-century dataset of Buddhist paintings on Bodhi leaves, containing multiple color-painted images of Buddhas that reflect the relationship among the Bodhi-leaf medium, Buddhist devotional imagery, and Qing-era export and monastic art.
FragmentOPENSUTRA_ORG_0000018
Bodhi-leaf painting Prajnaparamita Heart Sutra Diamond Prajnaparamita Sutra
This item contains Bodhi-leaf paintings together with two Prajnaparamita sutras, the Prajnaparamita Heart Sutra and the Diamond Prajnaparamita Sutra, combining Buddhist imagery, textual writing, and the material cultural value as objects of devotion/offerings.
TraceOPENSUTRA_ORG_0000031
Illustrated Praise of the Sixteen Arhats
Illustrated Praise of the Sixteen Arhats is an imperial palace gilt-painting album from the Qianlong period, composed of images of the sixteen arhat venerated disciples and accompanying eulogies, reflecting court Buddhist painting, arhat devotion, and the tradition of inscriptive praise.
Dharani
03
Mantra, Form, Ritual Order
Dharani pages and ritual images move between writing, icon, and recitation.
FeaturedOPENSUTRA_ORG_0000036
The Great Compassion Dharani of the Thousand-Armed, Thousand-Eyed Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva
The Great Compassion Dharani of the Thousand-Armed, Thousand-Eyed Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva is a text related to Avalokiteśvara dharanis and esoteric ritual practice. This item is inscribed as translated by Amoghavajra, the Great Tang Tripiṭaka, and is a Ming dynasty gilt-written and painted manuscript, combining mantra text and value as Buddhist calligraphy and painting.
FragmentOPENSUTRA_ORG_0000055
Finely Detailed Great Compassion Dharani Buddha Images
'Finely Detailed Great Compassion Dharani Buddha Images' is a dataset of Qing dynasty color-painted Buddhist images centered on the Great Compassion Dharani, Guanyin devotion, and Buddha iconography, with value for ritual practice, recitation, and image studies.
TraceOPENSUTRA_ORG_0000034
Heart Sutra in Five Scripts (Prajnaparamita Hridaya)
The 'Heart Sutra in Five Scripts' is a multi-script compendium edition centered on the Prajnaparamita Heart Sutra, printed in the 49th year of Qianlong and recorded as held by the Library of Congress.
Colophon
04
Hand, Seal, Object
Manuscript traces, imperial writing, and Buddhist utensils close the exhibition with material memory.
FeaturedOPENSUTRA_ORG_0000026
The Sutra of the Original Vows and Merits of the Medicine Master Lapis‑Lazuli Light Tathāgata
The Sutra of the Original Vows and Merits of the Medicine Master Lapis‑Lazuli Light Tathāgata is one of the core scriptures of Medicine Buddha devotion, translated by the Tang master Xuanzang. This item is annotated "Kangxi Imperial Hand Seal" and is an image of a manuscript written in the 53rd year of Kangxi.
FragmentOPENSUTRA_ORG_0000062
The Vajra-Wisdom Sutra of True Chan's Inner Seal: Sudden Realization and the Solidified Void Dharma Realm
The Vajra-Wisdom Sutra of True Chan's Inner Seal: Sudden Realization and the Solidified Void Dharma Realm is a folded sutra manuscript dated to the third year of Xuande (Ming), written by Shen Du and illustrated by Shang Xi, combining value for the study of Buddhist sutra copying, court painting, and Ming dynasty bookbinding.
TraceOPENSUTRA_ORG_0000040
Atlas of Buddhist Ritual Implements
Atlas of Buddhist Ritual Implements is image data of Buddhist offering vessels, ritual implements, and ceremonial objects, in two volumes. Such atlases help identify types of objects used in temple offerings, liturgical procedures, room arrangements, and material culture of Buddhism.